Ceiling or wall construction



March 6, 1956 B. w. NlEs ETAL 2,736,929

CEILING 0R WALL CONSTRUCTION Filed Deo. 3. 1951 INVENToRs 52M z/z/ im,

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United States Patent() CEILING OR WALL CONSTRUCTION Brainard W. Nies, Crystal Lake, anduRexford L. Selbe,

Evanston, Ill., assignors to United States Gypsum pany, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Illinois ApplicationA December 3, v1951, Serial No. 259,602

6 Claims. (Cl. 20-4) This invention relates to building construction and more particularly to a dry wall type of ceiling or wall construction. NormallyV in such typesv of construction, the joints formed by the adjacent edges ofthe' successive wallboard panels are filled with a joint cement and covered over by a thin iiexible tape 'cemented in place so that the finished ceiling or wall gives the visual effect of a monolithic surface.

Difficulty has always been encountered in attaining the desired visual effect' in suchy constructions, particularly when such constructions are'exposed to an atmosphere having alternately high and low humidity, because of a condition-known in the industry as beading-which occurs subsequent to the erection of the ceiling orwall. The term beading while somewhat of a misnomer, is

descriptive of what appears to be bulging` ribs or protub'erances which extend along the panel joints. Actually, however, it has been found by testsv that these joints are not swollen or bulging but instead that the condition is brought about by slight warping of the panels due to changes in relative humidity which cause the formation of regions of 'slight concavity at the sides of each joint. The condition isl apparently due in part to stresses and strains caused by the shrinkage of the joint cement orv the decorative materials subsequently applied thereto. Once beading has occurred, usually within weeks or months after erection, it can onlyl be corrected by sanding the joints to an essentially flat surface with respect to warped panel regions and then refinishing the sanded area.

Various remedies have heretofore been proposed to prevent the occurrence of this condition in dry wall type walls and ceilings but because of the diiiiculty and awkwardness in incorporating these remedies during theerection of such structures, or because of the increasedA cost of construction due to the need for special building materials or tools, such remedies have not been generally accepted or practiced by the industry.

Thus it is one of the objects of this invention to provide a dry wall type of wall or ceiling construction which successfully prevents the occurrence of beading even under extreme atmospheric humidity variations.

It is a further object of this invention to provide la non-beading dry wall type of wall or ceiling Aconstruction which is simple to erect and uses only standard or conventional types of building materials and tools;

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a non-beading dry wall type wall or ceiling construction having numerous improved structural characteristics.

Further and additional objects will appear from 'the' description, accompanying drawings, and appended claims.

In accordance with one embodiment of this inventiom'v a ceiling or wall construction is provided comprising a plurality of spaced supports arranged in substantiallyv parallel relation, a plurality of wallbo'a'rd panelsl arranged in coplanar edge-to-edge-relation and-secured? to one sideof said supports, and means-for reinforcing the joints',

plurality of relatively narrow, substantially rigid pieces or strips of board, one of' said pieces being adhesively mounted on the unexposed surface of the panel and in overlying relation with respect to a portion of a joint which is disposed between adjacent supports or in cases, Where the joint meets at or is overlain by a particular support, a piece is positioned parallel to and in juxtaposition with each of the opposite sides of said particular support.

For a more complete' understanding of this linvention reference should be made to the drawing wherein Figure 1 is 'a' fragmentary perspective view of a conventional dry wall type of ceiling construction wherein no joint reinforcing means has' been provided, and a condition of beading exists;

Fig. 2 is similar to Fig. 1, but joint reinforcing means have been provided and' the desired visual effect of a monolithic surface has been obtained;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary' perspective view of the unexposed side of the ceiling construction, shown in Fig. 2.

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to Fig. 1, a conventional dry wall type of ceiling con'- st'ruction is shown, in this instance, comprising a plurality of elongated supports or joists 10a, 10b, and 16C, which are arranged in spaced parallel relationship with respect to one another. Mounted on the underside of the joists are a plurality of conventional gypsum-core wallboard panels 11 and 12 arranged in coplanar edge-to-edge relationship. The Ipanels are of rectangular shape and' are secured to the joists by' nails 13 or any other suitable means. In the construction, shown in Pigs. 1, 2, and 3, the panels are arranged s'o that the long edges of the v panels are disposed at substantially a right angle to the joists. It isto be understood, of course, that the proposed construction to be hereinafter discussed would be the same if the elongated edges of the panels were disposed parallel to the supports. One of the joints 13 formed by the adjacent short edges or ends of successive panels 11 and 12 is shown to be disposed beneath joist 1Gb. The exposed or underside of joint 13 isL normally covered over with cement' or some other suitable adhesive material and then a strip of thin flexible tape 14 is laid thereover thus concealing, from view, the joint and the nails 13 used to secure the panel to the joist. After the joint cement has dried suiciently, any roughness caused thereby at the exposed joint area is sanded smooth so that the exposed side' of thev ceiling will give the eliect ot' a monolithic surface; However, within a period of weeks ormonths subsequent to the erection of the ceiling, shown in Fig. l, the condition, known as beading may develop which impairs the desired visual monolithic effect. The cause of the beading,' as heretofore mentioned, is not clearly understood, but is believed to be due, in part, to shrinkage of the' jointcement, during its drying period, and the warping to' a slight degree of the panels to` pro duce regions of concavity at the joints. The warping of the panels is shown somewhat exaggerated in Fig. l.

With the improved ceiling construction, shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the'occurrence of beading has been eliminated regardless of the time which has elapsed following erection of the ceiling, or the severe relative humidity changes to which the ceiling has been exposed. The relative disposition ofthe supports 10a, 10b, and 10c, and the wallboard panels 11 and 12 is the same as that shown in Fig. l. In the improved construction however, the joint 13, disposed beneath joist 10b, and the continuous joint 15 formed by the elongated adjacent edges of panels 11-11 and 12-12, are reinforced by relatively narrow pieces f6 and 1:6',y and 17, respectively. The pieces i6,

grease@ 16', and 17 are formed of relatively rigid material, preferably from scraps of the wallboard panels or wooden strips. The width of the pieces is substantially less than the shorter dimension or width of the panels themselves, but is sufficient to overlay a considerable amount of the abutting portions of the successive panels, particularly in the case of pieces 17 which overlay portions of joint 15. The lengths of the pieces 17 are determined by the spacing between the adjacent joists a, 10b, and 10c. The lengths of the pieces 16 and 16', which are adapted to reinforce the joint 13 disposed beneath the joist tub, depend upon the width of pieces 17 and the width of the panels 11--11 and 12-12'. The pieces 16 and 16', as seen in Fig. 3, are disposed on `opposite sides of joist 10b and in parallel juxtaposition therewith. All of the reinforcing pieces 16, 16', and 17 are secured to the unexposed surface of panels 11--11 and 12--i2 by any suitable adhesive material, such as cement.

The cement should be applied to one entire surface of each piece, preferably with a notched spreader blade, so that ribs or ridges of cement are formed which extend substantially crosswise of the piece. The coated surface of the piece is then brought into contact with the unexposed surface of the panels and a light pressing oscillating force is exerted on the piece so as to cause the cement to properly adhere to the panels. The relative disposition of the pieces depends on which joint is being reinforced.

Where, in the erection of the ceiling, the unexposed Surface of the panels is readily accessible to the workman, the pieces may be directly applied to the panel in the manner as just indicated.

Where, however, the unexposed surface of the panels is not readily accessible to the workman during the erection of the ceiling, the cement-coated pieces are mounted on the unexposed panel surface so that, for instance, in the case of joint 15, one-half the width of the piece 17 overhangs or extends beyond the edge of the panel, which is already secured to the undersides of the joists. The adjacent panel is then brought into coplanar edge-to-edge relation with the mounted panel and nailed to the joists. The cement coating of the overhanging portion of the piece 17 will engage with and adhere to the top or unexposed surface of the last applied panel thereby effectively reinforcing the joint between the two panels. Before applying the next piece 17, the workman reaches above the mounted panel and applies the pieces 16 and 16 on either side of the joist 10b.

These reinforcing pieces arranged along the joints of the panels and extending back therefrom an appreciable distance, and being securely cemented thereto, serve to effectively reinforce the panels in the area of the joints, preventing warping of the panels and consequently the formation of the objectionable beads While the foregoing description and figures relate to a ceiling construction, it is to be understood, of course, that the improved construction, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, may be readily adapted for use in wall constructions as well.

Thus, it will be seen that an improved dry wall type of ceiling or wall construction has been provided which successfully prevents the occurrence of beading even though the construction is subjected to wide atmospheric humidity variations. Furthermore, the improved construction is simple to erect and requires only the use of conventional types of building materials and tools.

While a particular embodiment of this invention is shown above, it will be understood, of course, that the invention is not to be limited thereto, since many further modifications may be made, and it is contemplated, therefore, by the appended claims, to cover any such modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of this invention.

We claim:

,-1. .A ceiling or wallconstruction comprisinga plurality of supports arranged in spaced, substantially parallel relation, a plurality of wallboard panels arranged in coplanar abutting edge-to-edge relation and having portions of the abutting edges thereof aligned with, contacting, and secured to said supports, and panel-joint reinforcing means disposed intermediate said supports and mounted on the exposed back surface portions of said panels; said means including a plurality of elongated relatively narrow substantially rigid pieces certain of which are adhesively secured to the exposed back surface portions of said panels and in spaced substantially parallel relation with respect to the joint formed between abutting panels and overlain by one of said supports and in side- Wise relation with respect to the overlaying support.

2. A ceiling or wall construction comprising a plurality of elongated supports arranged in spaced, substantially parallel relation, a plurality of wallboard panels arranged in abutting coplanar edge-to-edge relation and having portions of the abutting edges thereof aligned with, contacting, and secured to said supports and other portions of the abutting edges of said panels extending angularly with respect to and exposed between adjacent supports, and a plurality of panel-joint reinforcing pieces adhesively secured to the exposed back surface portions of said panels and having certain of said pieces positioned in spaced substantially parallel relation with respect to the abutting edge portions aligned with said supports and disposed in sidewise contact relation with such supports and other of said pieces positioned in overlying relation with respect to the abutting edge portions exposed between adjacent supports, said latter pieces extending from one side of one of said supports to the opposing side of the adjacent support.

3. A ceiling or wall construction comprising a plurality of supports arranged in spaced, substantially parallel relation, a plurality of wallboard panels arranged in coplanar abutting edge-to-edge relation and having portions of the abutting edges thereof aligned with, contacting, and secured to said supports; and ksecond portions of the abutting edges thereof angularly disposed with respect to said supports and exposed therebetween, and panel-joint reinforcing means disposed intermediate said supports and mounted on the exposed back surface portions of said panels; said means including a plurality of elongated relatively narrow substantially rigid pieces certain of which are adhesively secured to and overlie the exposed joint portions which are angularly disposed with respect to said supports, such overlying pieces extending from one side of a support to the opposing side of the adjacent support.

4. The construction claimed in claim 3 in which the reinforcing means comprises a plurality of substantially rigid pieces having a width less than the width of said panels and a length substantially the same as the length of the segments of the abutting panel edges disposed intermediate the supports.

5. A ceiling or wall construction comprising a plurality of elongated supports arranged in spaced, parallel relation, a plurality of wallboard panels arranged in abutting coplanar edge-to-edge relation and having segments of the abutting edges thereof secured to and in contact with said supports and in aligned relation with respect thereto and other segments of the abutting edges being exposed between adjacent supports and extending transversely thereof, iirst reinforcing means mounted on portions of the back surfaces of said panels and in overlying relation with the exposed joint portions formed by the segments of the abutting transversely disposed panel edges and extending from one side of one of the supports to the opposing side of the adjacent support, and a second reinforcing means for the joints formed by segments of the abutting panel edges aligned with and overlain by said supports, said second reinforcing means being mounted on the portions of the back surfaces of the panels disposed intermediate the. supports and saidrst reinforcing means and positioned on opposite sides of and in parallel juxtaposed relation with the support to which said segments of the abutting panel edges are secured.

6. A lmethod for reinforcing joints formed by successive wall panels arranged in abutting coplanar edgeto-edge relation and secured to and in contact with a plurality of spaced, substantially parallel supports positioned behind said panels, segments of certain of said joints being exposed between and angularly disposed with respect to said supports and other of said joints being aligned with and overlan by said supports; said method comprising applying to the corresponding sides of elongated relatively rigid narrow reinforcing pieces a coating of adhesive material wherein the adhesive material forms spaced parallel ridges which extend crosswise of the piece, forcibly applying simultaneously with an oscillatory motion the coated side of one set of said pieces against the portions of the back surfaces of the panels disposed intermediate the supports and in overlying relation with respect to the segments of the panel-joints exposed between said supports and forcibly applying simultaneously with an oscillatory motion the coated sides of a second set of said pieces against the exposed back panel surfaces intermediate the applied rst set of pieces and on opposite sides of and in contact with the supports aligned with and overlying certain of said panel joints.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,017,266 Walper Oct. l5, 1935 2,066,006 Kellogg Dec. 29, 1936 2,107,240 Eilertsen Feb. 1, 1938 2,293,431 Frease Aug. 18, 1942 2,296,416 Balduf Sept. 22, 1942 2,305,247 Fisher Dec. 15, 1942 2,578,085 Perkins Dec. 11, 1951 

